The media has always had a special bond with politics and politicians going as far back to JFK’s presidency. Barack Obama famously used the media to his advantage to help him win the presidency. In a matter of months Barack Obama became a media darling and it didn’t stop ones he moved to the White House. The president was seen everywhere from Jay Leno, Oprah, and he even had his March Madness bracket displayed on ESPN. Editor-in-Chief of More Magazine Lesley Jane Seymour had this to say about the president,
The Washington talking heads are probably mad because he is stepping over them and talking directly to the American people, but he’s a rock star, and we have not had a rock star presidency in a long time, since Kennedy, really.
Seymour said that about the president in 2009 and now, a year later, the honeymoon is over. As the president’s approval ratings have gone south the media has stopped treating him like a darling.
Some of the president’s proposed plans, such as health care, have come under a lot of scrutiny from the media and they show no sign of stopping. In the coming year President Barack Obama will be under the spotlight even more as the media pressures him for results and changes for the betterment of the U.S. Both of which, he promised relentlessly during his presidential campaign, such as immigration reform. This disdain has resulted in Spanish speaking media to turn their backs on the president. Jorge Ramos, an Univision presenter said,
He broke his promise. It’s that simple.
President Barack Obama’s relationship with the media is past the honeymoon stage, and now the hard work begins. The next year will see the media criticize and pick apart every presidential decision and on air comment he makes, let’s hope its good news that they report on, because if he fails to win back the media, or at the very least get them to shift their focus, it could potentially affect his chances to be re-elected for president. The media could find a new media darling to thrust upon the American public, in similar fashion to when they made Obama a celebrity, and this could prove to be disastrous for Barack Obama.
Here is a two part series on President Barack Obama and his special relationship with the media, produced by Al Jazeera English.
Part 1
Part 2
